Player Diary: California’s Max Homa (Part 10)

First of all, I can’t believe my college golf career has come to an end. It’s really sad for me to part ways with my team, but I want to thank them and my coaches for an unbelievable four years. It was weird knowing that the NCAA National Championship in Atlanta would be my last event. I tried to do my best to soak in the experiences and the time with my team.

The course (The Capital City Club’s Crabapple course) this year was great, and the practice facility was unbelievable. We had been there in September for the Ping/Golfweek Preview so I had an idea of how the course would play. It is very long and firm with plenty of difficult par-4s. It was tough to get the ball close to the hole so birdie opportunities were few and far between.

The team did great in the stroke play portion and we managed to earn the top seed for match play. Personally, I played great and happened to win the individual title. I was so happy since it was my biggest accomplishment of my career. However, there wasn’t a lot of time to celebrate because we had a match the next morning. We ended up winning that round because of a really clutch performance by Brandon Hagy, who hit a stellar wedge shot to a couple of feet on the last hole to win.

The next round we played Illinois and it all came down to my match against 2012 NCAA champion Thomas Pieters. I had a putt to extend the match on the 20th hole, however it lipped out and our season was over. I can honestly say it’s the most demoralized I have ever felt. However, we tried our best and lost to a great Illinois team who deserved the chance at Alabama in the finals. I was travelling all day during that last match, and it was really fun following along on Twitter via the Golfweek crew.

Shout out to the Alabama team. They had an incredible season and have one of the most intimidating teams I could think of. Also, they are a bunch of great guys who are so deserving of the victory, especially after the close call in 2012. And a special congratulations to my main man and fellow blogger, Justin Thomas, who is already doing big things on the PGA Tour.

The next day I happened to qualify for the U.S. Open. That week was so surreal. I got to meet Tiger Woods and Rory Mcilroy, along with so many other famous pros. The venue was awesome despite the rain, and the USGA did an incredible job keeping the course pristine. Despite missing the cut, the week motivated me to work hard to get on Tour and make this a regular occurrence. It’s a week I will never forget and something I will cherish for a long time to come!

Now it’s on to one last summer of amateur golf, which will hopefully end with the Walker Cup (USA USA!). I hope everyone is enjoying their summers and getting some golf in as well.

If anyone ever needs any golf tips this season, feel free to ask Cory Whitsett. That kid is good!